The elderly, disabled, young children or others who can't run will be out of luck.

And caretakers, such those with several young children or elderly parents, will face an excruciating decision: abandon the less ambulatory and save themselves, or risk near-certain drowning trying to help.

"The sad reality is, there at the current moment isn't a lot that can be done if an individual can't evacuate themselves," said Althea Rizzo, of the state Office of Emergency Management. "If they do choose to live in the inundation zone, it's really an individual effort to get them to high ground."

That's the bad news.

The good news: State agencies are working furiously to prepare for the disaster, which, though thought inevitable, could happen decades from now as easily as tomorrow.

The Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries is working on a pilot model for Cannon Beach that will calculate how long it would take from any point in the city to get to safety, and the most efficient route to get there.

"It's very important people have a clear understanding how long it will take them to get out of there and what their routes are," said Ian Madin, chief scientist at the state Department of Geology and Mineral Industries.

The department has created detailed simulations for five possible tsunami sizes, Madin said.

In the worst case, tsunami waves could reach 120 feet above sea level in Brookings, on the south coast. In the north, at the mouth of the Columbia River, they may be only 20 or 30 feet, he said.

A tsunami would hit shore quickly after the earthquake starts – within about 12 minutes in Curry County and up to 20 minutes elsewhere on the coast. Since shaking may last several minutes, residents at sea level might have just six to eight minutes to evacuate, Madin said.

DOGAMI also is developing information for those on fishing boats and ships. They'll have to quickly decide whether to race for port or head further offshore.

Most important, Madin said, is for fishing boats with gear out to cut their lines immediately or risk getting dragged under.

Meanwhile, the Office of Emergency Management is compiling public response plans from different agencies into a "Cascadia Playbook."

"It's basically pulling all of this information together into one spot," Rizzo said.

The office is working to map areas that may be isolated by ruined roads and bridges following an earthquake or tsunami. Seaside is expected to be among the worst.

Officials then might cache supplies in those areas, or give extra attention to shoring up bridges or developing alternate escape routes.

Public outreach also is high on the list.

The office is working with local tourism agencies to figure out how to give visitors safety information without scaring them off entirely. They also want standard training for new service industry employees on what to do in an emergency.

To reach young people and other who may be turned off by dire predictions of disaster, the office is trying to bring a little fun into community education, Rizzo said.

A tsunami "Race the Wave" fun run tracing the evacuation route will be held Sept. 28 at Cannon Beach.

And officials are working with Dark Horse Comics on a tsunami comic book for teens, Rizzo said.

The office also is working to improve the tsunami route wayfinding signs, the little blue signs that are hard to see at night or in foul weather, she said.

Rizzo speaks from personal experience. On a recent trip to the coast, she said, "I decided for fun to get up at 1:30 a.m. in the middle of a rainstorm and try to evacuate. I kept ending up in people's backyards."